my peeps in blogland ...

Almost a week later and I'm still amazed at how a fellow blogger in my teeny tiny circle here in blogland turned out to be a neighbor living right around the corner - not only that, but she also turned out to be a great person as well. Score one for me! But having swooper come to life, while certainly the biggest surprise, it isn't the only surprise to come out of blogging for me ... the fact that I actually have readers is definitely one more thing I never anticipated. And you all are people who I really enjoy seeing here - and people whose blogs I enjoy following as well. It seems a little crazy that I'm making friends I'll never meet, but here are some examples of why I love my peeps in blogland ...

• I love that after my Lilly Pulitzer jeep post a few weeks ago, Kim from What am I going to be when I grow up? sent me a photo of this amazing Marimekko car that she knew I'd fall in love with:

Was she ever right about how I'd react ... this car is B.A.N.A.N.A.S!! Thank you Kim!!

• I love that out of the blue last week, Kimberly at Yep they're all mine emailed me this phone photo just because she passed it at Trader Joe's and thought of me ... Thank you so much, Kimberly, this made my day!

• I love that Kerri at The Pleasures of my Life! passed a blog award on to me a few weeks ago ... that was a great opportunity to get to know everyone better with the "7 things about you" rule - and also a great chance to get to know other blogs as well via the "pass it on" rule. Thanks, Kerri!
• I love that my first reader ever, Lisa at Lists in my Pocket, has asked me to write a guest post for her 'simplicity series', I feel so honored to be included. But what I love even more is how incredibly patient she has been while I struggle to finish it ... I'm so embarrassed that I have needed extension after extension as I juggle my busy summer schedule and try to think of something that even Martha Stewart would approve of! Thank you so much, Lisa, you won't be sorry!
• I love that Jess from ccbella is someone who also loves the scorching summer temperatures and, prior to the discovery of swooper, she was my closest neighbor-reader, located right in Western Massachusetts.
• I love the feedback that I got from my last post re: real life vs. blog life. It was really reassuring to hear that both Jen and Kerri understand where I'm coming from in wanting to keep them separated. Not only that, but I also learned that Jen from Jen's Ink Pen! is yet another who, like me and Kim, lost her father to cancer - a sad truth, but at the same time it's something deep that we all really understand about one another.
• I love that I can engage in email conversations with readers like Cindy from ...Loving Life's Little Things... Cindy and I are both former teachers who are now full time moms to daughters - she is super approachable and sweet, and we've been trading emails about how to balance it all. She and Steph from Our Life on the Hill live in Illinois, a long way from my life on the New England coast ... it's been really great to get to know them!
• I also love learning about the lives of readers who I have less in common with, such as Mary Katherine from Five Girls the Army and Me and Jen from Denton Sanatorium. Mary Katherine is single handedly home-schooling her 5 amazing daughters, while Jen is the proud mother of an incredible 7 (!) children. Then there are blogs like Kristin's Bringing Pretty Back and Kimberly's Kimberly's Korner. Both of these mommy bloggers have grown children who are starting lo leave the nest ... all four of these women are like the Obi-Wan Kenobi of motherhood (also known as 'Obi-Mom Kenobi') - bravo!

So a big thank you to everybody in my little blog circle of friends ... it's been quite a journey, and you've all made me feel so welcome here ...